Certified Passive House Designer Training
Design buildings to the high-performance needs of the future.
- 35+ Hours of Content
- 35 AIA LU|HSW Credits
- On-Demand
- Live-Online
- In-Person
Certified Passive House Designer Training Near You!
Pennsylvania
Join The Passive House Network (PHN) for a hybrid on-demand CPHD training with live-online reviews and site visit(s).
Co-hosted with Passive House Pennsylvania.
Starts in June.
California
Join The Passive House Network (PHN) for a hybrid on-demand CPHD training with live-online reviews and site visit(s).
Co-hosted with Passive House California.
Starts in July.
Course Overview
In the Certified Passive House Designer / Consultant (CPHD/C) course, you will learn the core principles of Passive House design. You will discover why Passive House buildings perform better than traditionally constructed buildings. Develop your knowledge, and skill, to integrate Passive House standards into any building project. You’ll realize how flexible your design approaches can be while meeting passive house standards and your clients’ needs.
Passive House standards are supported by over two decades of building science. Passive House principles work together to create comfortable, efficient, resilient, healthy, and affordable buildings. They are performance-based standards that make Passive House buildings more efficient and future-oriented than standard building codes.
The CPHD/C training is a specially designed for professionals in the U.S. construction industry. It features Passive House calculations in Imperial units (rather than metric) and has a variety of case studies both U.S. and international examples. Regardless, of what type of projects you design, the Passive House standard can be applied. Find out how passive house standards work with residential, commercial, or institutional projects, or with new and retrofit construction.
The Certified Passive House Designer / Consultant training is a core course for building design professionals. The CPHD/C course provides you with training that is recognized internationally through Passive House Institute (PHI). This course will prepare you for PHI’s Certified Passive House Designer / Consultant exam.
Find out more about the CPHD/C exam.
Learn the difference between PHI’s Certified Passive House Designer and Certified Passive House Consultant designations.
Why attend this course?
- Gain a strong foundation in passive house principles that can influence all your building projects, including single-family, multi-family, mixed-use, commercial, and industrial.
- Learn Passive House standards and calculations using Imperial units rather than metric.
- Develop the skills needed to calculate for high-performance buildings.
- Explore case studies of passive house buildings from a variety of projects, and learn best practices and design tips for different conditions.
- Learn the core requirements for all certified passive house designer and consultants so that you can take the certification exam.
Course Takeaways
- Course manuals for download
- Reference Sheets
- Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) software in IP units
- PHPP reference manual (hard copy)
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Outline the basic building science principles of the Passive House Standard
- Determine strategies for implementing the principles in both design and construction phases
- Describe the role of Passive House energy model and its relationship to component selection, detailing, and execution.
- Explain basic energy calculations based on typical building assemblies
- Take the CPHD/C exam for PHI certification
Topics
- Introduction to Passive House
- Thermal Insulation
- Airtightness
- Thermal Bridges
- High-Performance Windows
- Ventilation
- Heating and DHW
- Cooling
- Certifications
- Economics
- Bidding
- designPH and PHPP overview
- CPHD Exam Prep Overview
Who Should Attend
The Certified Passive House Designer / Consultant course was developed for a wide range of student profiles include architects, MEP and structural engineers, facade, energy and sustainability consultants, contractors, developers, policymakers, regulators, and more.
- Architects
- Engineers
- Planners
- Designers
- Project Managers
- Consultants
Participants' Course Highlights
"I'm enjoying learning more about airtightness and how to deal with it."
"[The] importance of designing details to prevent moisture getting trapped in an exterior wall assembly, to avoid, thermal bridge, and to make sure airtightness to prevent air leakage."
"I think the highlight is the testing of airtightness."
"Economic calculations are useful in many fields and it's great to have them explained clearly and concisely."
Save 10% on the CPHD
Members of The Passive House Network receive up to 20% off on PHN courses plus additional benefits.
A professional level membership pays for itself when registering for the Certified Passive House Designer course. Students and Emerging Professionals memberships also available.
Become a MemberFinancial Incentives
Live or Work in Connecticut or Massachusetts? You may be eligible for a 50% reimbursement.
Find out more about available Financial Incentives, or click below to find out more about MassSave and Energize Connecticut. Check to see if you meet the criteria!
MassSave IncentiveEnergize Connecticut IncentiveWhich course option is right for you?
The contents and main course handouts are all the same, but how you choose to take the course gives you different additional benefits and features. Take a look below to see how each option is unique.
The CPHD/C On-Demand course features 2 mandatory Live-Online webinars that allow you to dive deeper into PH calculations with a trainer and other course participants.
This course includes some exam preparation materials, so students can begin preparations prior to exam registration and the more formal exam preparation process.
Students can complete the course in about 10-12 week when spending about 1-2 hours per week on content.
The On-Demand course is divided into cohorts which is designed to help participants pace themselves to be ready for a specific CPHD/C exam. If students are interested in a later exam they can still be apart of the current cohort but would register for the later exam, or unspecified date.
In-Person
Face-to-Face- 5 full day sessions
- Online resources
- Meet your Peers
- Quickest-Pace
- Great for Groups and Teams
- Sessions not recorded
- Currently Limited Dates & Locations
The CPHD/C In-Person course includes online supplemental materials for students to check their knowledge and review content.
Enjoy learning Face-to-Face. Ask questions and get immediate answers from trainers. Learn and discuss with your peers before, during, and after sessions.
5-Day Course Outline
- Day 1: Introduction to Passive House principles, with an in-depth look at enclosure insulation & thermal bridging: principles, calculations, details, systems and components.
- Day 2: Enclosure airtightness and windows: principles, calculations, details, systems and components.
- Day 3: Ventilation, heating, cooling, dehumidification and domestic hot water: principles, calculations, details, systems and components.
- Day 4: PHPP energy model and calculating building energy balance.
- Day 5: Retrofits, economics, certifications and exam preparation.
Live-Online
Anywhere. Synchronous.- 5 full day sessions
- Online resources
- Meet your Peers
- No commute
- Quick-Pace
- Great for Groups and Teams
- Sessions not recorded
Live-Online is available for groups only at this time.
The CPHD/C Live-Online course includes online supplemental materials for students to check their knowledge and review content.
Ask questions and get immediate answers from trainers. Learn with your peers and discuss passive house.
In-House Certified Passive House Designer Training
Learn more about the In-House CPHD training options available for company of Passive House team.
DownloadCourse Schedule & Registration
*Save on the course by bundling the course with the exam.
On-Demand Sessions
35+ hours of self-paced content with 2 required Live-Webinars. 1-year access.
In-Person Sessions
In-Person sessions are being schedule for later this year and 2023 in select locations. Contact [email protected] for more information.
Live Online Sessions
Live-Online is available for groups only at this time.
Things to Know
Course Completion Requirements
For PHN On-Demand courses all lessons, topics, and quizzes must be marked complete; any required webinars must be attended; AND the post-training survey must be completed.
For In-Person & Live-Online single day courses, 100% attendance is required to receive a course completion certificate.
For In-Person & Live-Online multi-day courses, no more than 2 hours can be missed to receive a course completion certificate.
Continuing Education Credits
Courses with continuing education credits (AIA or PHI) are noted in the course details section.
AIA credits for Live-Online and In-Person Courses will be reported to AIA by PHN if a participant provides their AIA number during registration. All other participants can use the certificate of completion to report continuing education credits either to AIA, or other agencies that recognize the AIA CE credits.
PHI credits are self-reporting. Find out a courses PHI course number. Report PHI credits.
Technical Requirements
Live-Online and On-Demand courses require a personal computer or laptop with a good internet connection speeds and audio listening capabilities. A web-camera is optional but preferred for Live-Online sessions. Preferred web browsers are Firefox, Chrome, or Chromium-based browsers.
In-Person courses do not require laptops or other devices, unless specifically mentioned. Although a laptop, or other note-taking equipment (pen and paper) are encouraged.
Learning Platform
The PHN learning platform provides instant access to almost all On-Demand courses and some Live-Online courses.
Transfers, Cancellations, & Refunds
Education & Training FAQs
For more information about PHN education, training, and courses, check out our FAQs. (Coming soon)
Group Training
Want to bring one of our courses to your company or organization? Many of our courses are ready to be delivered In-Person, Live-Online, or On-Demand to groups and teams. For more information, including group pricing and quotes, please contact [email protected]
Training Questions?
Please contact [email protected]